2-889-551 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Harbour and Town of Cherbourg, 1850. The French port of Cherbourg prepares for a naval review. 'The vast harbour, which, in ordinary times, seldom possesses more than one or two ships of war laid up in ordinary, with a sprinkling of coasters, fishing-vessels...now contained the finest fleet of ships of the line ever brought together in France, a considerable number of magnificent steam and other frigates...With respect to Cherbourg itself as a naval station, it is a most important harbour, and consists of three parts, namely, the mercantile or inner harbour, which is commodiously situated at the mouth of the Divette; the Government dockyard and arsenal, which are quite distinct from the above, and are situated to the north-west of the town; and the great outer harbour, or roads, through which it is necessary to pass in order to reach either the mercantile harbour or the Government dockyard'. From "Illustrated London News", 1850.